Taxman claims bounty from UK high earners

The special task force put together by HMRC to claim the maximum amount of tax from 5,000 UK high earners has reportedly been a success for the taxman by doubling its takings in the space of a year.

According to figures, the HMRC high net worth unit amassed £162 million in the 2010/11 tax year, compared to the previous year’s total of £86 million.

The elite task force tasked with taxing Britain’s elite is comprised of 400 different people posted throughout the eight HMRC offices found in the UK. Despite the nation’s high-earners already feeling that they pay too much tax, the need for such a taskforce was insisted on by Treasury minister David Gauke: “These are economically challenging times and it is absolutely essential and only fair that everyone pays their share of tax. Technical complexity does not stand in the way of accuracy so that the very rich pay the tax the law says they should.”

However, HMRC did reveal that much of the excess money was claimed due to misunderstandings, errors and lack of understanding of the tax rules. HMRC has previously been criticised for targeting people who make honest errors on their tax forms with harsh penalty charges.